Pine Street Market

We left Portland in late May of last year, to try life out in Columbus, a decision that we haven’t regretted (at least not reaalllllly. Don’t get me wrong, there are days and there are moments of homesickness so sharp that it can drop you) but big picture, no regrets.

I’d heard about Pine Street Market as it was being worked on and developed, and I’d definitely heard from friends about it since we moved.

This isn’t the first time that Portland has tried out the idea of a food hall, on a smaller scale that Faneuil Hall in Boston, but similar nonetheless. Before, it didn’t work. This time however, it really is.

We headed down for lunch, figuring that we would stop in, grab a quick bite, and then be on our way. Ha. Quick stop. Nope. Everything about the market appealed to not only the foodie in me, but visually to the photographer as well.

The building itself (The Carriage and Baggage Building, built in 1886) is on the National Register of Historic Places, and is tucked into downtown Portland, just off of the waterfront, easy walking distance from pretty much everything in the heart of downtown.

I had my camera in hand, as I do pretty much all the time, and I am crazy glad that I did. The design of the interior along with the layout of the space is great. It’s welcoming, friendly, and lends itself to easy browsing, should you be so inclined.

Jeff knew exactly what he was getting before we set foot inside, and headed straight for Pollo Bravo. I on the other hand, headed off, camera in hand, to soak it all in, and decide once I’d checked it all out.

I started out at Kure, where the fine fella working the counter made my month by remembering how to make the Chocolate Mouth Party, a long time favorite of mine from when I first worked in banking and worked across from their first brick and mortar. From there, I hit up Trifecta Annex for a slice of Ken’s pizza. Trifecta also sells breads and pastries, and we snagged a couple of loafs of French bread to take to a friends for dinner later that night.

I made my way back to Pollo Bravo and joined Jeff, just as his roasted chicken was served. I had just a taste of his, as I was stuffed from my own meanderings, but oh man. We’re definitely going back.

We didn’t have enough time, or room in our stomachs, get ice cream from WIZBANGBAR, coffee from Brass Bar, Ramen from Marukin Ramen, BBQ from Kim Jong Smokehouse, Isreali street food from Shalom Y’all, or a sausage from Op Wurst, so I can’t speak directly to any of those, but you’d better believe that the next time we’re in town, we know where we’re getting lunch